My first IPA was Flying Dog Snake Dog - which came across so bitter and astringent, I felt like my tongue was going to shrivel and die in my mouth. It was enough to make me never want anything with that acronym ever again. Then I gave DFH 60 Min a chance, and I haven't looked back since.

IPA's and sours for me. The first ipa that I enjoyed a lot was probably victory hop devil. It has enough malt to get malt lovers into the beer with a ton of hops too. For sours, the one that really got me into (some) of them was Oro de Calabaza from Jolly Pumpkin.

I was never a big fan of Scotch Ale/Wee-Heavy when I first got into craft. Too heavy and malty for my taste. Now I cannot get enough of them. Scotty Karate and Dirty Bastard are two of my go-to beers no matter what time of year.

When I first started out I only liked the lighter beers and thought stouts and barley wines tasted horrible. Now stouts are my favorite style and I will try anything stout related and any barley wine and I don't like the lighter stuff like lagers anymore.

Since becoming immersed in the craft/fine beer world, are there any styles that you initially avoided but now enjoy? If so, which style? Is there a specific beer you give credit to for expanding your palate or was it a steady progression?

Thanks

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I used to not care too much for stouts or porters. But now I have found that I enjoy them if they have flavors added to them like vanilla, coffee, mocha, or maybe smoked. Plus I didn't drink many IPA's in the past. But now I really enjoy the massive hop blast you get with them.

Honestly, I stayed away from them for years and just decided to try one one day. My tastes have just changed/evolved. Nothing profound, it was just that simple. The same thing happens to me with food. Lots of foods such as guacamole, steak, sweet potatoes, and many others that used to hate growing up are now ones that I go to often.

I avoided barley wines due to their overly high abv and sweetness, but now I really enjoy them. Also i avoided lagers and pilsners because I thought they all tasted like AAL. I find myself really enjoying all of these as long they are really well made and flavorful.

Years ago when I first got into craft brew, as soon as I hit 21, I would avoid Belgians, more specifically Saisons and Belgian Pale Ales. At the time I didn't understand the complexity and my palate was too naive to like Belgian yeast. All this coupled with the higher price tag meant I avoided these jewels. Now that I'm done with school, not as broke, got tired of too many IPAs & Stouts, and after years of trying many many styles I have grown to favorite Belgian brews over other styles. As soon and I tried my first Quad and Belgian Strong Dark ale I was hooked and never looked back.

Scottish/Scotch ales were something I needed to work into, along with anything smoked. Something about the smoked malts really had to grow on me. Now I'm a huge fan of Scotty Karate, Dirty Bastard, and Bell's Christmas.

Now that you mention it, maybe those deserve a new review.

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I need to expand my smoked beer palate. Perhaps pairing a good one (maybe one you mentioned) with food will help.